LONDON: DAZN, the world’s first pure sport live and on-demand streaming service named Ben King as its new senior vice president (SVP) of Global Partnerships and Business Development.
The London-based King is set to join DAZN in February from Apple where, over his 12-year tenure as commercial director for international services, he worked at the forefront of some of the world’s most successful digital entertainment and media services including the iTunes Store, App Store and Apple Music. He played a pivotal role in driving the growth of Apple Music outside the USA as it raced to 50 million subscribers in just three years.
King will drive DAZN’s growth strategy and build best-in-class commercial and distribution partnerships with the world’s leading platforms, telecom operators, retailers, brands and portals. It is live in seven countries across three continents and is launching in Spain and Brazil in early 2019. The ambition is to be in 20 markets by 2020 and to become the leading sports streaming service globally.
He will report into John Gleasure, DAZN chief business development officer, who said: “Ben is universally respected across the industry as an innovative and talented operator who delivers results for both partners and his services. His global experience and insight-driven approach will enable DAZN to grow faster and stronger as we extend our business deeper into both existing and new markets. We are delighted to get him onboard.”
King commented on the development: “From the first time I met the DAZN team, I was blown away by the product, the people and the ambition. DAZN has spotted an opportunity to develop a global sport streaming service before anyone else and is executing aggressively to extend its lead. Live sport may be the last holdout of the digital media revolution, but I have no doubt about the benefits of bringing fans closer to their favourite teams and sport stars through a more user-friendly, convenient and affordable service. The potential is staggering, and I could not be more excited about joining DAZN to help realise it.”
DAZN is available on nearly every connected device including TVs, smartphones, tablets, PCs and games consoles. It streamed a record 200 million hours of sport to millions of fans around the world in 2018 from the world’s leading sport competitions including English Premier League, UEFA Champions League, Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1, NHL, NFL, MLB, Matchroom Boxing and Golden Boy Promotions.
